The Minnewaska State Park Preserve is a
preserve located on the
Shawangunk Ridge
The Shawangunk Ridge , also known as the Shawangunk Mountains or The Gunks, is a ridge of bedrock in Ulster County, Sullivan County and Orange County in the state of New York, extending from the northernmost point of the border with New Jerse ...
in
Ulster County
Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster.
History
...
,
New York on
US 44/
NY 55
New York State Route 55 (NY 55) is a east-west state highway in southern New York, running from the Pennsylvania state line at the Delaware River in Barryville to the Connecticut state line at Wingdale. It is the only other state ...
, west of New York State Route 299. The park, which features scenic overlooks of the nearby
Catskill Mountains, is primarily used for picnicking,
hiking
Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
,
mountain biking, snowshoeing and swimming. The park is managed by the
Palisades Interstate Park Commission
The Palisades Interstate Park Commission (PIPC) was formed in 1900 by Governors Theodore Roosevelt of New York and Foster Voorhees of New Jersey in response to the quarrying operations along the Palisades Cliffs of New Jersey. The Palisades, a Na ...
and the
New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
Four of the five sky lakes on the Shawangunk Ridge lie within the preserve: Lake Minnewaska, Lake Awosting, Mud Pond (also known as Lake Haseco), and Lake Maratanza; Mohonk Lake is on the property of the
Mohonk Mountain House
The Mohonk Mountain House, also known as Lake Mohonk Mountain House, is an American resort hotel located south of the Catskill Mountains on the crest of the Shawangunk Ridge. The property lies at the junction of the towns of New Paltz, Marbletow ...
to the north of Minnewaska. Lake Minnewaska is a bit less than long by wide at its widest point. Lake Awosting is roughly three times as large, with a length of about and a maximum width of about mile.
History
Originally part of Albert and Alfred Smiley's
Mohonk Mountain House
The Mohonk Mountain House, also known as Lake Mohonk Mountain House, is an American resort hotel located south of the Catskill Mountains on the crest of the Shawangunk Ridge. The property lies at the junction of the towns of New Paltz, Marbletow ...
property, the Minnewaska Mountain House, or Cliff House, was built in 1879 overlooking Lake Minnewaska; it could accommodate 225 guests. After managing and developing Mohonk's early growth for ten years, twin Alfred H. Smiley purchased and developed Minnewaska separate from Mohonk, but the brothers exchanged courtesies to each other's guests. A second hotel, Wildmere, accommodated 350 guests. In 1955, Kenneth B. Phillips Sr., the Minnewaska general manager, bought the property from the Smiley family. Cliff House was abandoned in 1972 due to maintenance costs; it burned to the ground in 1978. Wildmere closed in 1979 and burned to the ground in 1986.
After years of wrangling over commercial development proposals and lawsuits to block development, New York State bought the property in 1987 and opened the Minnewaska State Park Preserve in 1993. A significant expansion of occurred in 1996 when the
Open Space Institute
Open Space Institute (OSI) (not to be confused with the facilitator network of open conversation space) is a conservation organization that seeks to preserve scenic, natural and historic landscapes for public enjoyment, conserve habitats while s ...
transferred acreage to the park preserve from the old Ellenville watershed lands, now called
Sam's Point Preserve. The preserve was managed by
the Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US.
Founded in 1951, The Nat ...
and by the Open Space Institute until April 2015, at which time management was transferred to the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the Palisades Interstate Park Commission.
Located within the Minnewaska State Park Preserve and neighboring
Mohonk Preserve is the
Trapps Mountain Hamlet Historic District
The Trapps Mountain Hamlet Historic District is located on the Shawangunk Ridge in Gardiner, New York, United States. It is a large area that covers the site of a settlement that thrived there from the late 18th to mid-20th centuries. Inhabitant ...
, listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 2000.
Early 21st-century expansion
In March 2006, an additional were added to the preserve as a result of action by a coalition of conservation groups including the
New York - New Jersey Trail Conference, Open Space Institute, and Nature Conservancy. The success was made possible in part because the real estate partnership that sought to develop the Awosting Reserve property collapsed due to an internal financial dispute. To settle this dispute among the partners, a court ordered that the property be sold. The
Trust for Public Land
The Trust for Public Land is a U.S. nonprofit organization with a mission to "create parks and protect land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come". Since its founding in 1972, the Trust for Public Land has compl ...
purchased the property for $17 million and immediately turned the land over to New York State.
Ecological characteristics
Unique communities such as ice cave talus, pitch pine-oak-heath rocky summit, and extensive chestnut oak forest comprise Minnewaska State Park Preserve. These ecosystems host a variety of plants and animals that are uncommon in New York State. Wildlife such as the timber rattlesnake (''Crotalus horridus''), bobcat (''Lynx rufus'') and New York State's only documented occurrence of the noctuid moth ''
Zale curema'' reside within the preserve.
/ref>
Swimming in Lake Minnewaska
Swimming was allowed throughout the entirety of Lake Minnewaska and surrounding Lake Awosting and Peterskill areas until 1987 when New York State purchased the land and closed the lake to public recreation. In 1988 under the guidance of Helga Schwartz and through numerous petitions, swimming was reinstated in a small roped off area.
On April 19, 2000 Judy Mage, Myriam Miedzian, and Ellen James met with Park officials and the PIPC (Palisades Interstate Park Commission) to present proposals for the allowance of distance swimming on the lake. As a result of this meeting the designated swim area in the lake was increased and the closing time for swimming was extended by half an hour.
On June 11, 2000 SWIM (Swim Without Interference at Minnewaska) was created to attempt to bring back swimming throughout the entire lake. After much debate and negotiations with Parks officials, SWIM proposed the formation of a club where members would be tested for swimming ability, purchase insurance cards, and sign release of liability forms. The group was able to secure a second swimming area consisting of a 200-yard buoyed cable that runs parallel to the shoreline for distance swimming.
In Spring 2002 SWIM became the Minnewaska Distance Swimmers Association (MDSA) and signed up 430 members its first year. As of 2009 the MDSA has close to 700 members
Image gallery
File:Best Swimming Spot in Lake Awosting.JPG, Lake Awosting
File:Palmaghatt Kills Ravine.jpg, Palmaghatt Kills Ravine, Old Growth Forest
File:View of Lake Awosting From a Cliff.JPG, A view of Lake Awosting from the cliffs
File:Beach at Lake Minnewaska 2011.JPG, The swimmer's beach at Lake Minnewaska
File:Minnewaska State Park.jpg, Frozen lake, Minnewaska State park in late March, 2021
File:Minnewaska State Park Preserve.jpg, Frozen Lake Minnewaska, March 2021
References
External links
New York State Parks: Minnewaska State Park Preserve
Lake Minnewaska.org
NY-NJTC: Minnewaska State Park Preserve Trail Details and Info
Lake Minnewaska Mountain Houses
{{authority control
Shawangunks
Palisades Interstate Park system
Climbing areas of the United States
Gardiner, New York
Wawarsing, New York
Protected areas established in 1993
Parks in Ulster County, New York
State parks of New York (state)
Nature centers in New York (state)
U.S. Route 44
1993 establishments in New York (state)